Chapter 126 - Tom Joins The Fight

Everyone in the guild turned mute. For a short moment, those who cheered for either party forgot the tongue in their mouths, unable to believe what just happened. 

Total domination with a single hit. That was the true power that Claudia could exhibit at any moment. 

Those who could understand this simple truth realized something else. Ever since the gauntlet has been thrown, the girl did nothing but toy with her prey. All those short moments when the scrawny archer attempted to attack happened not because of his skill but because Claudia allowed them to happen. 

Yet, even those who could understand that, some turned too emotional to see the through right before their eyes.

"Heal him!" the wizard-looking girl from the archer's party shouted in distress. Her eyes widened, hinting that the adrenaline levels in her blood skyrocketed. 

"On my..." someone in the crowd shouted in response, only to stop, frozen in place when Claudia raised her hand. 

"It was a fight to the death," she said in a cold voice, killing any and all initiative of those willing to help. "I doubt anyone would be rushing to help Tom or me out if we were on the losing end, so what makes you believe that I will allow any help for him now?" she asked, sending cold glares towards everyone who dared to as much as flinch. 

"Don't be unreasonable," the man clad in steel armor said, stepping forward and placing his hand on the hilt of his massive sword. "There is a limit to how vile you can be in this town," he said, pulling an inch of his blade out of its scabbard. 

"I dare you to take another step," Claudia said, unbothered by the clear threat in the man's words. 

"Do you think we won't dare?!" the staff-holding girl said. Her voice oozed desperation mixed with unlimited hate and disdain. 

"Hold your horses, little whore," Tom said, stepping forward. Yet, even though he took the brunt of all the stares on himself, he didn't bother to pull his weapon out. "And you, mister in great armor wishing to go two versus one against an unarmed girl," Tom turned his stare to the burly man. "You call us unreasonable?" he asked before shaking his head. 

"You came on us, challenged us to a fight for no reason, and now you are trying to save someone whose life my girl has rightfully claimed?" Tom asked, alternating his stare between the man and the girl of the party. 

"I don't care," the woman said, leaning her staff forward. "Step back and let us heal our friend, or face the consequences," she said in a cold, calm tone. 

"I tried," Tom said, turning his face to the guild master. Yet, instead of a troubled or annoyed expression, Tom saw amusement on her face. "I tried to spare their lives, but they are giving me no choice," he added, shaking his arms as if he was shaking the responsibility for what was about to happen out. 

"Feel free to do whatever you want with them," the woman said, in a voice as plain as was her shirt. 

"Die, you bastard," the wizard girl shouted before Tom could even get ready for the fight. At the same time, the bulky top of her staff shone with a bright light. 

'Haste,' Tom thought, invoking his bread-and-butter spell. In an instant, the world around him slowed down. With his skill active, the increasing brightness of the girl's staff suddenly turned still as if it was just some kind of elaborate flashlight. 

'Recall.' With more than enough time to spare, Tom called forth one of his magical spears. 

'In the fight of this level, there should be no need for the real thing,' he thought before breaking the haste spell. 

The time resumed its natural flow. 

"I hope you won't mind..." Tom said just as the wizard girl finished invoking a spell on her own. 

The light on top of her staff seemed to condense, only to implode and suddenly expand outwards. This time, though, rather than spreading like a wave of light, it turned into sharp icicles of condensed magic, all aimed at Tom and Claudia alike. 

"... if we destroy the building a little," Tom finished his sentence as the girl's attack tickled him all over.

Yes, he didn't even bother to dodge. Ever since the hostilities started to grow, he focused all of his attention on figuring out the strenght of the other party. And while they were likely to be something on the local level, when compared to Tom's level of power, their attacks wouldn't amount to more than a bug's bite. 

"Is that all?" he asked, leaning his head slightly over his shoulder. 

"Tsk," the girl clicked her tongue, instantly moving to cast another spell. 

"You wasted your chance!" the man in the armor shouted, drawing up his massive sword. As he took a step forward, he used the momentum of his move to finish the draw, instantly bringing the tip of his sword on an arch against Tom. 

"As if," Tom muttered, stepping aside from the sword's path. 

"Do you want me to join?" Claudia asked as a small smirk formed on her face. 

The two of them fought for long enough to know each other capabilities. That's why Tom was never worried about Claudia during her duel. And that's because she could see how he was simply playing around with the two clueless idiots. 

"Nah," Tom said, shaking his head while avoiding a barrage of cuts from the armored man's sword. "Going two versus two against them would be just straight out bullying,' he said, leaning his head to the side to avoid getting it scrapped by the sword. 

"I got you!" the wizard girl screamed out in joy as a huge smile formed on her lips. Following this, seven pillars of fire suddenly erupted all around Tom, effectively sealing his movement. And then, they started to move in a circle, tightening its diameter at a slow yet steady pace. 

"Do you really believe that?" Tom asked, throwing his magical spear aside, right through the gap between the pillars of fire. 

'I don't think this fire could do shit to me,' Tom thought, yet he still went on with his momentary battle plan. 'Swap,' he ordered, letting the magical spear take his place inside the trap. 

"What?" the sorcerer girl muttered in surprise. Her eyes widening to the limit only proved that she didn't expect such a move at all. 

"Hey, can you tell me how does slavery work in this place?" Tom threw a question at the guild master, already forming up an end-game plan for the fight. 

"Huh?" The woman shook, surprised by the question. Yet, she was the only person with wits quick enough to not annoy Tom. "Simple. Once a slave, a slave forever unless released by the master," she said, as her pupils dilated. 

'Don't tell me she already figured out that was the plan all along,' Tom whined internally, annoyed by such a potentially capable figure right in the first town he entered. While having a guild master capable enough to see through his intention was something praiseworthy for the local guild, yet extremely annoying for Tom. 

Because that meant he could no longer take her lightly. 

"Well, that settles it," Tom muttered, turning his attention back to the ongoing fight.

During this little exchange, the girl managed to prepare another spell with her staff. The ball of light already formed on its tip, announcing loud and clear to everyone watching that the new attack was coming. 

'Is she an idiot or something?' Tom asked himself, slapping the blade of the man's sword away before conjuring another magical spear in his hand. Then, finally free of the burden of stalling for time, he threw it towards the girl.

"Hiya!" the sorceress shrieked out in panic as soon as she noticed the blade rocketing towards her. Yet, before her scream could finish, it had already landed just a single step away from her. "Huh?" she exhaled in shock when she realized that she had just avoided danger. "You missed!" she then exclaimed in an obvious attempt to put Tom's morale down. 

"He did not," Claudia chuckled. But Tom didn't wait for her to get her bit. Swapping places with the spear he just threw, he used the momentum he got before swapping to push his first right towards the girl's soft stomach. 

"Ugh," the sorceress bent in half when her insides got squashed by Tom's fist. The light on top of her staff disappeared along with her focus. 

"NADIA!" the man in the armor shouted, instantly changing the direction of his attack and rushing to help his friend. 

"Sit," Tom said, throwing a simple fireball straight towards the man's face. 

By the time his body reached Tom's feet, the poor man was already desperately fighting to kill the flame that ate away at his head. 

"Right now, you have two choices," Tom said, looking down at the opponents he just defeated. "Resist and die, or submit to me as slaves and I will allow you to heal your friend," Tom said, ignoring how Claudia could be dissatisfied with such a result. 

After all, he just arbitrarily decided the potential fate of a man whose life belonged to her. 

But that problem was something they could deal with at a later date. And thankfully, from the lack of reaction from the girl's side, she seemed to understand it well. 

"W-we..." the man attempted to say something, only to turn silent when the fire on his face used the lapse in his concentration to grow right back to its previous size.

"We surrender," the woman at Tom's feet pushed the words out through her tightened throat, only to go right back to retching her guts out directly on the building's floor.